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MPs say woefully inadequate eating-disorder care is costing lives

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80% Informative

Eating disorders are often misunderstood and seen as lifestyle choices affecting only white teenage girls.

12% of all 17-19-year-olds and nearly 21% of young women have an eating disorder.

Hospital admissions for eating disorders in England have steadily increased since 2000 and surged since the pandemic, with more than 31,000 admissions in 2023-24 .

NHS England mental-health director Claire Murdoch says there is "no doubt" eating-disorder services are "under extreme pressure" But more than four out of every five children and young people who needed urgent treatment started it within one week .

Campaigner Hope Virgo worries some people with long-term eating disorders are being viewed as "untreatable" and "being sent home to die".